The Mecosta County board of commissioners discussed the marijuana excise tax funds, FEMA grant funding and more at the meeting on March 6.
Here are the top five items discussed at the Mecosta County board of commissioners regular meeting, held at 9 a.m. Thursday, March 6.
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County Administrator Mindy Taylor told the board they have received the notification of the 2024 disbursement of the Marijuana Excise Tax Funding to the county.
The county is set to receive $698,743, a reduction of $187,551 over last year.
The county administrator will accept applications from organizations requesting funding from March 10 through April 28. Once all the applications are received, the board will meet to review the applications and narrow down their list of applications for consideration, and schedule presentations to be done in June and possible award the funding in July.
“The board will review all the applications and come to a consensus on what you want to hear presentation wise and then what you want to award,” Taylor said.
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The board approved a request from the Mecosta County Emergency Management Department to move forward with a grant application for funding to develop the hazard mitigation plan for the county.
“Every county in the state has a plan in development except us,” EMD manager Patrick Maddox said. “It is something we should do. It will make us eligible for hazard mitigation project funding in the future.”
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The plan will identify mitigation efforts the county can implement to make residents safer and provide quicker recovery in the event of a disaster, he said.
Steve Currie, executive director of Michigan Associate of Counties shared information on the organization’s achievements in 2024 and goals for 2025, as well as some of the services provided by MAC.
“We are primarily known for three areas — advocacy, education and service,” Currie said. “We do our best in Lansing to put county priorities first. We also work in collaboration at the federal level to address federal issues that affect counties.”
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MAC offers several educational opportunities for county commissioners and employees in the form of conferences, classes, webinars and other programs, he said.
They also have a variety of services that county boards can take advantage of, including a workman’s compensation fund, that saves the county money and help support the organization.
The focus of the organization for 2025 will be to establish a trust fund for county revenue sharing to ensure a fair and equitable disbursement of funds annually.
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The board approved accepting a grant award in the amount of $7,350 to be used for the purchase of a Live Scan package that will allow easier access to criminal history record information when doing background checks.
“This will cover the costs of replacing obsolete computers with new ones with the Windows update,” Commissioner Greg Adams said.
The board approved submission of a Letter of Intent to apply for funding for the Fiscal Year 2026 County Veteran Service Fund Grant.
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The grant and the fund have not been determined and is dependent on the state budget office and legislative approval, the letter states.
The letter of intent is required to apply for the funds.
During the meeting, the board also approved the following:
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The next board of commissioners meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m. March 20 at the Mecosta County Services Building, 14485 Northland Drive, Big Rapids.
For more information, visit: mecostacounty.org.
Cathie Crew is a reporter for the Big Rapids Pioneer. She has a bachelor’s degree in English with teacher certification. She taught ELA for 15 years. She grew up around this area, and recently returned to Big Rapids after having lived in Texas for many years. Her favorite pastimes are traveling and spending time with her two adult children.
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Mecosta County board reviews marijuana tax funds, FEMA grant – The Pioneer
